Good morning, Quartz readers!
What to watch for today
China-US talks continue in Washington, DC. Key issues still need to be settled ahead of a March 1 deadline, after which the US has said it will raise tariffs on Chinese goods. Chinese president Xi Jinping heralded the “important progress” made in China last week, while Trump signaled that the deadline could be extended.
Israel hosts central European leaders, minus Poland’s PM. Mateusz Morawiecki backed out of the two-day summit of the Visegrad Group, which also includes Hungary, the Czech Republic, and Slovakia, after comments by Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu on Poland’s role in the Holocaust. The three-decade-old bloc is holding its summit outside Europe for the first time, as Israel (and the US) seek to isolate Iran.
Olympic track champion Caster Semenya challenges controversial gender rules. The Court of Arbitration for Sport in Lausanne will consider whether new track-and-field rules that would require the South African athlete to take medication to lower her testosterone levels in order to keep competing with other women are discriminatory.
US financial markets are closed for Presidents’ Day. Markets in Canada are also closed, for Family Day.
Over the weekend
Two days in the Trump administration. On Saturday, Trump’s pick for UN ambassador withdrew after news that she had hired a nanny who wasn’t authorized (paywall) to work in the US; the acting defense secretary said he could refuse to redirect Pentagon funds for a border wall; and Trump roiled European allies by threatening to release ISIS fighters captured in Syria. On Sunday, California’s attorney general said a lawsuit over Trump’s declaration of a state of emergency is “imminent”; and a Japanese newspaper reported that Shinzo Abe nominated Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize at the White House’s request. Trump played golf both days.
Apple hired a new head for its smart home division. Sam Jadallah previously headed the startup Otto, which was billed as the “Apple of smart locks,” and also spent time at Microsoft. Apple is on a hiring spree in an effort to catch up to Google and Amazon in the smart-home department.
British lawmakers said Facebook behaves like a “digital gangster.” The rebuke came in an 108-page report issued Sunday by members of parliament who concluded after more than a year of study that the social platform knowingly violated Britain’s privacy and competition rules. The report calls for more scrutiny of Facebook and new regulations on tech firms.
More Brexit fallout. Seven Labour MPs announced Monday morning that they were quitting the party over its handling of Brexit, as well as allegations of anti-Semitism in the party. Theresa May will try rally support from her EU counterparts for changes to the exit deal this week, ahead of Britain’s departure from the bloc at the end of March. Few of the other 27 EU members seem willing to budge on the agreement, which was ratified last year, but voted down by Britain’s parliament last month.
The Vatican defrocked a cardinal for sexual abuse. Pope Francis expelled former cardinal and archbishop of Washington, Thomas McCarrick. It’s the first time an American cardinal has been removed from the priesthood (paywall) and a critical moment in the Church’s decades-long sex abuse scandal.
Nigeria postponed its presidential elections. Hours before voting was due to begin, the country’s electoral commission announced a week-long delay, a move the opposition pegged to voter disenfranchisement on the part of president Muhammadu Buhari. For citizens, the decision is disruptive and costly.
Saudi Arabia committed $20 billion to Pakistan. Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman kicked off a high-profile tour of Asia, seen by many as an attempt to rebuild his reputation in the wake of journalist Jamal Khashoggi’s murder, by signing a surprising number of “phase 1” investment agreements.
Quartz obsession interlude
Welcome (back) to the era of the mixtape. They mostly come in digital forms now, but the 40-year-old concept—a carefully curated, finite playlist—remains powerful in an age of endless options. Hip-hop artists pioneered the medium and continue to reap the rewards. Lend us your ear at the Quartz Obsession.
Membership
Microsoft recorded more than $100 billion in revenue for its last fiscal year, more than two-and-a-half times the amount Facebook brought in, eight times more than Netflix’s annual figure, and within spitting distance of Alphabet. A lot of pixels have been displayed to describe this turnaround. For this week’s field guide, we look at the company’s strategic decisions to pursue (and as importantly, not pursue) various lines of business, and what these decisions mean for Microsoft’s future.
Matters of debate
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WeWork’s creepy new strategy might end the workplace as we know it. The shared-office operator acquired a company that tracks how people move around physical spaces.
The Fortnite emotes lawsuits will never go away. When it comes to dance moves, what’s legally sound is different from what’s ethically sound.
We get the journalism we deserve. Levels of media literacy are too low to sustain high-quality work.
Surprising discoveries
China plans to put a solar power station in space. The energy it generates would be beamed back to Earth via a microwave or laser. (What could go wrong?)
A space harpoon is being used to reel in space junk. The British company that shot the spiky contraption from a satellite has also experimented with collecting space debris using a net.
A stuffed whale penis sold at auction for $6,000. The 19th-century specimen may have been used by sailors to store tobacco on long voyages.
Counting push-ups can help predict your risk of heart disease. A simple test devised by Harvard researchers showed promising results.
Karaoke singers can now go pro. A new AI autotune tool helps smooth over (paywall) off-tune belting by revelers.
Our best wishes for a productive day. Please send any news, comments, space junk, and classic karaoke tracks to hi@qz.com. Join the next chapter of Quartz by downloading our app and becoming a member. Today’s Daily Brief was written by Adam Rasmi and edited by Jackie Bischof.